


one for sorrow, two for joy

by sadbutchhours



Category: American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Coven
Genre: Angst, Birds, F/F, Ghosts Maybe?, Hospitals, I'm so sorry, Wakes & Funerals, idk what to tell you, lowkey a songfic but no one knows the song so it's fine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:08:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27813565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sadbutchhours/pseuds/sadbutchhours
Summary: “Where do you think you’ll go?” asks Misty one night in the hospital.“When I…?"Misty nods.Cordelia laughs, and it’s weak, and it’s painful. “You’re the one that went to hell, Misty. You tell me.”
Relationships: Misty Day/Cordelia Foxx | Cordelia Goode
Comments: 11
Kudos: 31





	one for sorrow, two for joy

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by "magpie" (aoife o'donovan), an absolutely gorgeous and heartbreaking song about grief.

"Where do you think you’ll go?” asks Misty one night in the hospital.

“When I…?”

Misty nods.

Cordelia laughs, and it’s weak, and it’s painful. “You’re the one that went to hell, Misty. You tell me."

“You sure ain’t going to hell, Delia,” says Misty. And that’s a fair point, and Cordelia’s not sure where to go from there. She _doesn’t_ know, that’s the thing. She’s never been one to believe in God or heaven, but she knows hell is real, so - where _will_ she go?

One by one her girls come to say goodbye. Zoe’s sobbing as soon as she walks in and sees Cordelia on the bed, and then she’s sobbing because Cordelia’s comforting her and she shouldn’t have to, not like this, and then she’s sobbing because she has to leave. Cordelia doesn’t understand a word she says, but she knows what Zoe’s trying to say is _thank you._ Madison holds herself together until Cordelia reaches up and strokes her cheek, and then she sees a distinctly genuine tear fall from her eye. 

Queenie’s smiling the whole time, distracting Cordelia with stories of all the shit Madison’s been getting away with while she’s been gone. She’s eventually shooed out by Coco, who comes in to give Cordelia a hug, and as she pulls away Cordelia slips one of her rings onto Coco’s finger.

“It looks better on you anyway,” she whispers. Coco giggles.

After Coco comes back into the waiting room Misty watches Mallory stand up to replace her. Perfect Mallory, Mallory who she can’t help but hate a little for what she’s doing to the greatest person in the fucking world, but also Mallory who might be the only one just as devastated as Misty is. She can only imagine what Cordelia tells her when they’re alone in that room, but when she comes back her eyes are vacant as she just sits down next to Misty and murmurs, “She loves you.”

Misty wakes up to a high-pitched drone in her ears and flashing lights around her and a distinct lack of tingling warm energy from the bed next to her.

Cordelia passed easy, they tell her, painlessly. Misty assumes this is meant to reassure her, but the only thought in her mind is _why didn’t I wake up?_

This is the second time, she realizes, that she’s failed to wake up and it’s led to Cordelia’s destruction.

She almost can’t bear to go back to the graveyard, but ironically, it’s Madison’s hand in hers that keeps her steady on her feet. The whole coven serves as pallbearers, lifts her up on their shoulders and lowers her into the ground like a boulder. They stay and mingle for a few hours, swapping stories of Cordelia, and then of Fiona and Myrtle, mourning what feels like the end of a generation.

Eventually it’s just Mallory and Misty left. They sit in silence for several minutes -- Misty wonders if Mallory is praying -- and then Mallory takes a deep breath and stands up.

“Are you okay to get home?” she asks Misty.

Misty nods. _Home._ Where is that now, anyway? The closest thing she’s had to home is lying in a box in the ground in front of her.

Mallory is about to say something else, but it sticks in her throat and she turns away. Misty’s left with a corpse.

It’s dark by the time she finally stands up and gets in the car. Her knees are killing her -- well, not _killing her,_ she reminds herself, that’s a privilege she has, but they hurt like hell.

She starts on the long road out of the cemetery. There’s a gate at the bottom of the hill that always takes forever to open, and as Misty waits she sees a small black-and-white bird flitting around several feet away. A magpie. They’re uncommon enough around here that Misty can’t help but feel that it’s a sign of some kind. The feeling only grows when Misty exits the cemetery and the bird doesn’t leave her sight, almost like it’s following her. When _another_ magpie joins the first, whirling around it playfully, it’s like they’re taunting her.

It’s then that she feels it: fingers skittering across her knee, warm breath against her cheek, the familiar thrum of magic beside her. She knows she’s imagining it. She has to be. But God, it feels so _real,_ and it breaks Misty’s heart clean in two, a physical pain that crawls up her throat and down her arms and legs. She doesn’t know why she would imagine such a thing. It hurts far too much to be on purpose.

She grips the steering wheel tighter, wills herself to stop the fantasy, but it doesn’t end. Cordelia’s whispering something in her ear as she pulls up to the Academy and she can almost make it out --

She turns the car off, the lights come on. And she’s alone.

**Author's Note:**

> i... am very sorry. how we doin gang?


End file.
